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I recently finished reading the brothers Brafman’s (Ori and Rom) latest collaboration, Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior (Doubleday Books, 206 pages).As of early August, the June release was sitting at No. 14 on The New York Times’ best sellers’ list , down from its July position of No. 7. Perhaps something else is swaying book buyers to other titles. Nonetheless, the book takes readers on a psychological voyage lined with fascinating—and sometimes odd—case studies, ranging from over-sensitive egg buyers to the “curse” of having a low draft pick.

They write: “Living in a time when we can predict hurricanes, treat diseases with complex medical interventions, map the universe, and reap the benefits of systemized business approaches, it’s easy to forget that … all of us are swayed at times by factors that have nothing to do with logic or reason.”

After finishing this fairly quick and compelling read, I found it was hard not to apply some of what I had learned—or at least become more aware of—to what was going on in my personal and professional life. Does that mean that I have managed to loosen the grip that irrational forces have on me? Not quite, but at least I understand more about them.

For more information about Sway, check out the authors’ Web site , where you can read reviews of the book, learn more about Ori and Rom, as well as follow them with their blog.